chapter forty

Tammy's POV

A loud voice slices through the air. "If you don't want to do it, then we will!"

Fear pierces through me as I look around the chanting crowd, scared of what may happen to me if I stay here any longer.

I immediately start to regret my decision to come back. I had made a terrible mistake.

As I turn to flee, a man stumbles into my path, his face flushed and contorted in anger. He is occupied with his agitation and doesn't notice me, so I slip around him and walk away, desperate to escape.

"Where do we search?!" The same man asks again.

"No need," Amanda's voice cuts through the noise. "She is right here with us."

My blood runs cold, and I bring my steps to a halt as I hear her words, wondering how she knew I was here all along.

'Did she see when I walked in?'

I turn, my gaze locking onto hers. She stares at me directly, her finger pointing in my direction.

"There she is," she announces, her voice carrying an undertone of triumph.

The crowd's roar dies down, every eye now on me.

A woman shrieks, "Someone grab her!"

I don't have to think twice before I resume my escape with hastened steps, my heart hammering in my chest.

I barely make any progress before the man who blocked my path earlier grabs me by my arms, hauling me forward, toward the front. I struggle to free myself from his firm grasp, but to no avail, as he is unnaturally strong, despite his lean body.

'Where is Adam? And why isn't he coming to help me?'

Could he be in on this? The thought crawls into my mind, filling me with fear. The idea feels like a blow, making me lose the will to struggle against the man's grip.

The man shoves me roughly to the ground, and I have a hard landing. When I look up, my gaze finds Adam's, but he seems indifferent about what is happening.

The sides of his lips tilt up in a smirk, as he watches me scramble to my feet.

"Adam," I whisper, my voice trembling. "Please help me."

He ignores me, turning to the crowd. "Now that you have her, what do you plan on doing with her?"

"We have to make her heal the sick," someone rasps from the crowd.

"But I can't do anything," I choke out, but no one hears me, my words lost in the sea of voices.

"Let's take her to the clinic," another person yells. "She has to do something!"

"Please," I beg, tears stinging my eyes. "Just let me go,"

They erupt in a laugh, a harsh and mocking sound. Adam and his Father laugh too. Eric and Ophelia stand watching me, their faces blank and unreadable.

The man yanks me to my feet, his claw-like fingers digging into my skin.

Seeing that I am truly alone, a surge of anger flares in me. I try to wrench myself free, but he doesn't budge doesn't budge.

A strange sensation washes over me as he pushes me toward the direction of the infirmary, the crowd following behind.

"Leave me alone!" I scream.

Suddenly, the man is pulled back by an unseen force, his grip on me loosening. The crowd lets out a collective gasp, shocked by the turn of events.

I turn to see him on the ground, clutching his sides in pain. His eyes widen, his eyeballs rolling back as he stares at me, his face a mask of terror.

"Please," he croaks. "I'm sorry. Just let me go."

My brows furrow, and I look around me, wondering who he is talking to.

The man begins to cough violently, blood trickling out of his eyes, nose and mouth.

I go to touch him, confused about what's going on. "Don't touch me. Let me go, please. I will do whatever you want," he cries.

I shift away, realizing it's me he's talking to. "I-I can't help you," I stammer. "There's nothing I can do."

He shakes his head, and I notice the blood also coming out from his ears. "Release me, I beg of you."

He seems to think I have control over the situation. "I can't do that. I don't understand what's happening to you," I explain.

Suddenly, the man lets out a blood-curdling scream and then loses consciousness.

A scream pierces the air, and I whirl around, my attention now on the crowd.

The lady, Amanda, points a trembling finger at me. "A witch! We have a witch among us!"

I shake my head. "What? No!" I cry. "I'm not a witch!"

"Witch! Witch! Witch!" The chants rise from the crowd.

I turn back to Adam. "Adam, tell them I'm not a witch. Adam please!"

He turns away from me and disappears into the crowd.

"Seize her!" his Father barks.

No one moves to touch me, fear holding them back. It leaves me relieved and at the same time, confused.

"Has everyone suddenly lost their hearing?" he roars. "I said get her!"

At the command, hulking men with bulging muscles, step forward. I slowly back away, but I'm trapped by the crowd surrounding me.

"Please," I whisper, my voice cracking.

One comes up to me and seizes me by my arm, and the other two flank me.

Power surges through me, and I shove the one holding me away, sending him stumbling back. "Stay away from me!"

One of them pays no heed to my words, slowly advancing towards me. "You're a witch. Your kind is the main reason for our suffering in this pack," he growls. "We are going to make you pay for the sins of your ancestors."

"I said, stay away, or I'll kill you!" I threaten, backing away from him and toward the edge of the crowd.

The man smirks. "If you really knew how to use your powers, you would have escaped already. Don't make this hard for yourself, little witch," he sneers. "Just come heal the rest of them, and we'll... not hurt you."

A cold dread settles over me. I should have known something was not about these people from the start.

Is this the real reason why Adam was insistent on having me here? And what's this about me being a witch?

Now I know why I couldn't find the handbook. Adam and his father must have taken it and planned this to trap me.

"You can't do anything to me," I say, trying to project the confidence I don't feel.

"Really?" he asks, inching even closer to me. "Let's see about that."

I turn around, running for safety. I run past a few trees, going as fast as my legs can carry. I don't turn back, fearing that I might lose balance, but I also wonder why they haven't caught up with me yet.

I don't stop to feed my curiosity. Rather, I increase my pace, my lungs burning from exhaustion.

The trees go by me in a blur, and it feels like I've been running for ages. I'm surprised by how fast I'm able to go.

I hear the sound of voices in the distance, and I smile to myself, thinking I've made it to somewhere safe.

To my sheer shock, I find myself going back to where I started.

'How did that even happen?'

The three men stand facing where I arrive from, arms crossed and legs wide. They all have smirks plastered on their faces.

"Thought you could run, did you?" The man from before chuckles. "I admire the effort, though. You were quite fast, for a little witch," he says with spite.

I stare at him, my chest rising and falling as I try to catch my breath.

"I enjoyed the show, though," he says. "I tell you what, you're gonna get another chance to escape. Go straight through those set of trees," he points out. "And maybe you'll not find yourself running in circles again."

One of the men standing beside him begins to argue, but he raises a hand, silencing him. "Don't be a show stopper, Jasper. Don't you want to see how far our little witch can go?"

The man, Jasper, doesn't say anything else, stepping back to his place behind the frontman.

"Little witch," he says, bringing his attention back to me. "I'm going to count down from three, and you have to run. Don't stop until you're sure you're safe, okay?"

I swallow.

He begins counting. "One, little witch..."

I don't wait for the next number, bolting into the woods once again. I'm unable to go far, as a hard object connects with the back of my head. My vision blurs and I lose my sense of balance, stumbling on my feet, until finally...